


Juliette

by GoldenDaydreams



Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: (I still think Gavin is a cat person though), Bonding, Dog Fighting, Fluff, Fluff and Humor, Friendship, Gen, Looks like she could kill you but is actually a cinnamon roll, Remember when Neil said Gavin is a dog person?, The dog pees when she's scared, and she's always scared, doberman, that's why i wrote this
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-20
Updated: 2020-06-20
Packaged: 2021-03-04 04:42:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,285
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24827761
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GoldenDaydreams/pseuds/GoldenDaydreams
Summary: Gavin adopts a doberman after breaking up a dog fighting ring.That's it. That's the story.
Relationships: Captain Allen & Gavin Reed, Connor & Gavin Reed, Tina Chen & Gavin Reed
Comments: 10
Kudos: 69





	Juliette

**Author's Note:**

> This has been sitting in my files for over a year now XD Might as well post it while all my other stories are on hold while taking part in an RBB.

Gavin had no intention of owning a pet. He lived and breathed for his job. There was no room in his life to give attention to some needy animal. It wasn’t that he hated animals, on the contrary, he enjoyed goofing around with the K9 recruits in their little training vests, and no day was complete without watching a couple cute cat videos. He liked his elderly neighbour’s parrot that swore hilariously, and had helped Chris set up a salt water aquarium for his child’s bedroom. 

He liked animals. 

He just didn’t think it was a good idea to have one. 

And looking around the old factory, cages upon cages, he didn’t think people in general deserved dogs. 

“What a shitshow,” Tina said, her hands both clasping around the neck of her bulletproof vest. 

It wasn’t their case, but post-revolution, a lot of officers hadn’t returned to Detroit, and this dog-fighting ring needed to be busted. They were just assisting, and both happy to do so. 

There were about thirty Pitbulls, a handful of Rottweilers, a couple of Dobermans. They were vicious, snarling, drooling, snapping any time one of the officers walked by. Scared creatures driven to violence. 

Gavin couldn’t keep his eyes off one of them though. A Doberman laying in the back of it’s cage, anxiously biting, and licking at the cage. The teeth were bloody, and likely loose, maybe one or two even missing. 

“People are fucking garbage,” Gavin muttered under his breath. 

“You’re not going to hear me arguing that one,” Tina replied. They’d been on the job long enough that they’d both seen the worst that humanity had to offer. 

Gavin crouched down. The Doberman’s ears were pinned up. Short stubby tail was tucked down. Chewing, chewing, chewing. Licking some of the blood up. Back to chewing. “Hey,” he said softly, then whistled. The dog heard him, ear twitching in his direction. “Cut that out, you’re not going to have any teeth left.” 

The dog, of course, couldn’t understand. 

It would be a while before animal control arrived, and he worried. He’d never broken up a dog ring before, and wasn’t sure what was going to happen to them all. At this point, he was afraid to ask. 

The dog hadn’t snarled at him yet. Just kept anxiously chewing. He reached out, and touched the locking mechanism, the dog didn’t pay him any mind. 

“Gav. Don’t.” 

“It’s teeth are gonna be all fucked up, T.” 

“Yeah, well you try to stop him, and your arm will be all fucked up.” 

He scoffed. She had a point, and while she was about seventy percent of his self-control, it wasn’t enough to stop him. He twisted the mechanism over to the unlock symbol. 

“God you’ve got big dumb energy.” 

A deep breath. “Funny way of pronouncing dick,” he shot back. 

“I’ve met your exes, so yeah, you’ve got the dick dumb energy too.” 

He spared a moment to glare at her before returning his attention to the dog. “Okay,” he gently pulled the gate open a little. The other dogs were still barking up a storm, and it kept him alert, and on edge. He slowly opened the cage, taking measured breaths. He gave a short, sharp whistle to get the dog’s attention. Like before, an ear flicked in his direction, but this time the dog paused in the chewing in order to lick more blood from it’s lips. 

The dog’s head turned in Gavin’s direction, and he fought against the instinctive fear response. Every cell of his being wanted to slam the cage shut. 

“It’s okay,” he said- maybe to the dog, maybe to himself. 

The dog pinned it’s ears back, lips curled exposing the bloodied teeth. 

“Yeah, you’re real scary,” Gavin said, as if to make light of it, when in fact it chilled him right to the bone. “No more chewing.” 

“You’re a fucking idiot,” Tina hissed- somewhere over to his right. “Shut the damn cage.” 

He wished he had something to bribe the dog with. Some treats, or even just some water. The dog looked underfed, and there were bites on it’s body. “You’re going to be okay,” he promised the dog. 

“Reed!” Allen shouted, marching over. “What the fuck are you doing! Shut that cage!” 

He listened to the captain, only because the dog had started whimpering, and urinated on itself. He stood, and squared up. “I want that dog.” 

“Gavin, no,” Tina hissed, the angel on his shoulder. 

He ignored her. 

Allen glanced at the dog. Snorted. “You would.” 

“Can I have it?” 

“Do I look like your mother?” Allen replied. “I’ll send you the forms. Now get back to work!” 

::

The vet gave the dog a surprisingly clean bill of health, all things considered. She was approximately a year and a half, a little underweight, the bites on her flank weren’t infected, and had been stitched up. One of her teeth had been missing when she’d been brought in, and they had to pull another. Gavin paid to get her up-to date on her shots. 

She wasn’t vicious. Terrified of everything, whimpering in the back corner of the kennel when Gavin went to pick her up. She peed again. “This is going to be a thing, isn’t it,” he muttered with a frown. 

He’d spent way too much time at the pet store over the past few days, buying all the things he would need for her. First up, a pretty white collar with little pink and yellow flowers. “Hey, girl,” he said softly. He’d been in to see her while she was healing, and tests were being done. Mostly, he sat outside of her cage, and talked to her. A few times she wandered closer to him. He’d poked his finger through the cage, and she’d let him pass it over the top of her head a few times. He didn’t want to push his luck. 

“Look,” he said, jingling the collar a little. “It’s for you, okay?” 

He took a deep breath, opening the cage. “Please, don’t make me look like an idiot by biting me. Everyone says you’re going to.” Tina, and Allen both thought he was an absolute dipshit by adopting her, and he was determined to prove them both wrong. He reached in, ready to pull back. Her ears tipped back, her eyes were alert, but she wasn’t snarling. 

It was like she’d given up, she was just waiting on whatever he’d do to her. 

Carefully, he placed the collar around her neck, making sure it wouldn’t be too tight before he latched it. He pulled his hands back, and waited a minute, letting her adjust. She just kept watching him, cowered in the back of the kennel, hunched over her own piss. 

“Come on,” he said, putting a treat down in the center of the cage, and another by the door, then backing away. “Time to come out. We’re going home.” 

It took twenty six minutes before she had the second treat, and he clipped the leash on when she was chewing. “Good girl.” He put another down, and she ate it immediately. He tugged gently, and she went along beside him, head down, tail down. 

He put her in the back seat of his car where he’d thrown down a cheap shower curtain, and a towel in hopes that if she did pee herself on the drive, he wouldn’t have an absolute disaster to clean out of the upholstery. “Be good.” 

In the drivers side, he glanced in the rear-view. “Try not to bite me while I’m driving. It’d likely kill us both.” 

She laid down, and whined the entire way. 

And when he brought her out- of course she’d peed on the towel. 

“Great,” he muttered dryly. 

::

His house was small, but it was good enough. He already had her dishes prepared; food and water in white and blue bowls. She was skittish, and spent most of her time in the kennel he had set up in the living room. He didn’t close the door, but she laid there. Watching him. He talked to her a bit, remarking on whatever he watched on television. Bribed her with food when he ate dinner on the couch- probably a terrible habit to start, but she had crawled forward a bit to lick some chicken up off the floor. 

“You need a name,” he said, this time keeping the chicken in his hand, extending it. He could practically hear Tina calling him a dipshit. 

The dog sniffed, wiggled a little bit closer, then licked it out of his hand. “Good girl,” he said softly, reaching out, heart aching when she flinched, and lowered her head. He touched the top of her head lightly, rubbing a couple of fingers behind her ear before pulling back, careful not to cause her too much stress. 

He tried a couple of names, reading them off some website before pausing on one in particularly. “Hm. Juliette, how about that?” 

Juliette’s ears flicked, but otherwise she showed more interest to the chicken on his plate. 

“Okay.” He tore off another piece of chicken, and put it in his palm before extending it to her. “Here, Juliette.” 

The dog happily licked it off, and basically swallowed it without chewing. 

::

After the first week, she didn’t flinch away when he put her leash on, and took her out into the back yard. She stuck close to him when they were outside, and often returned to her kennel when inside, but sometimes, if he wasn’t in the living room for long enough, she would seek him out, and sit somewhere far away where he was still in view. 

In the second week, he hired a dog trainer to work with her privately, and eventually he brought his own dog over to help socialize her. 

Gavin bumped into Captain Allen on his way out of work. “Huh, you’re still all in one piece,” Allen said with a smirk. 

“You doubted me?” Gavin put a hand over his heart in faux-offense. 

Allen full out smiled then. “Every. Single. Day.” And then continued on his way. 

“You’re a prick, Allen!” He shouted, and only earned a laugh in return. 

::

“Come on, girl.” Gavin took a slow step toward her. “A good girl, best girl.” Another step. “Good girl, Juliette.” 

Juliette went low on her front paws, her little stubbed tail wagging with enough force that her whole hind end swayed. 

He crouched a bit, and reached for his badge her mouth, and she took off running around the side of the couch again. 

“Goddamn it!” Gavin stood up again, looked over the couch to see Juliette peeking over the coffee table, badge still in her mouth, chewing it a little. “That is not a toy!” 

He walked to her little basket, and pulled out a stuffed lion. “Do you want the lion? Come on, I know it’s your favourite.” He squeaked it, and Juliette’s ears turned toward the sound. 

“Want the lion, fetch!” He tossed it down the hall, and Juliette bound after it. 

And returned to the living room with the lion, and his badge in her mouth. 

Gavin couldn’t help the fond smile. “Overachiever.” 

::

Gavin came home to a disaster after some horrific overtime. He’d just finished processing a scene of a triple homicide, while he’d briefly stopped in at home to let an increasingly skittish Juliette out, he hadn’t seen his bed in thirty-nine hours, and- 

“Good God,” he groaned looking around. 

Juliette had torn open his pillows- not just the decorative ones on the couch that Tina had bought him as a house warming present. No. The actual couch cushions too. And there were feathers- only the cushions and throws weren’t-

“Please, no,” he groaned. His bedroom a disaster, the synthetic goose-down blanket was torn open, feathers everywhere. Juliette had some feathers sticking out of her mouth. She whined when she saw him. 

And peed on the bed. 

Gavin pressed his fingertips into the bridge of his nose. “Fuck my actual life.” 

::

After the first month, things got easier. Juliette seemed to come to terms with the fact that Gavin wouldn’t hurt her- more than that, she seemed to understand that if she put her head on his lap when he was eating, he would always give her a little bit of food. 

When he would go to the back door, she would follow. Unleashed, she would bound about in the back yard. She hadn’t quite gotten the hang of fetch yet- running and grabbing the toy, yes. Returning it, and dropping it, no. 

If he grabbed the leash, she would go on short walks with him. She still clung fearfully to his side, but she went. Other people (with or without dogs) would cross the street to avoid them, scared of her breed. Which was fine for Gavin at that point. She nearly peed on his shoes when she saw a Chihuahua. 

She trusted in him completely. Did a full body wiggle every time he came home. Slept up on his bed, head usually resting on his ankle. 

She was the best decision he’d made. 

::

“Detective Reed?” 

Gavin opened his eyes to see Connor with a red LED in front of him. He jerked back, his chair jostling. “The fuck.” 

“You fell asleep at your desk. You’re also experiencing a fever. I advise you to go home.” 

“I’m fine,” he said, self-consciously wiping at drool on his face. 

“The cough you’ve been disrupting the office with over the past three days says otherwise.” Connor reached over and grabbed his keys. “Come on, I’ll drive you home.” 

“I don’t need some android driving me home!” 

“Fine.” Connor opened his hand, keys in his palm. “You get your keys back, you can drive.” 

“You’re an assho-” he reached for them mid-word, but it hadn’t distracted Connor in the least. 

Connor twirled the keys around his finger. “Come on.” 

Gavin grumbled about it, but given how badly he wanted to sleep, and how his sinuses were shot, he allowed it. Even allowed Connor to escort him to the door. Gavin missed the lock with his key the first time, but focused and unlocked it. Juliette was at attention ears pinned back, lips curled. 

“Woah,” Gavin stepped in, keeping himself between his dog, and Connor. “Juliette,” he snapped his fingers and pointed to the ground. “Lay down.” 

She kept her eyes on Connor, but laid down. 

Gavin coughed into his elbow, but motioned the android in. “She’ll be fine. More likely to piss on the floor then attack you.” 

“I heard that you had a dog,” Connor said, sounding pleased. Despite her occasional growl, he knelt down. “Hello, Juliette.” 

“I didn’t tell you her name.” 

“She wears it on her collar. Besides, there is a monogrammed dog bed,” Connor said, pointing. 

So, she was spoiled, sue him. She deserved it. 

He went into the kitchen and grabbed a handful of treats. When he returned, he crouched down next to Connor, passing the treats over. “Bribe her for friendship. That’s what I did.” 

Connor’s lips curved, and he looked impossibly soft. “Happily.” 

After ten minutes, Juliette was sitting in Connor’s lap, looking rather pleased with herself. 

“New bed, huh?” Gavin mused, then coughed into his elbow. 

“Would you mind if I took Juliette for a walk?” Connor asked- saying the magic word, and Juliette went directly to the front door to sit by her pink leash. 

“Go for it, she still sometimes pees when she sees a new dog, but she’s getting better with the neighbour’s dogs… still is scared of that fucking chihuahua though.” He coughed, feeling like he was trying to hack up his entire lung. 

“Should I take you to a walk-in clinic?” Connor asked, LED cycling blue, to yellow. 

“It’s a cold. Just, take a few treats for Juliette, she’s less afraid outside when there is food.” 

Gavin had to wait until the next day to ask how it went. He’d fallen asleep on the (new) couch. He imagined it had to go well though, because Juliette had laid over him, even though their really wasn’t room for both of them on the couch. He grinned a little, resting his hand on her head. 

::

Juliette got better at socialization over time. Connor frequently brought Sumo over, the lazy, lumbering dog big enough to take Juliette’s playing, but not aggressive enough to scare her. 

When there was construction on his street, he took Juliette to work. It was the first time since the raid that Captain Allen saw her. “Jesus, that is the most outlandish collar I have ever seen,” Allen said, out of his SWAT uniform. 

Gavin glanced down at Juliette, who sat at his side, eying Allen, but not snarling- or peeing, so an improvement on all accounts. Her collar was new, a soft pink with rhinestones, and yellow tulle flowers on the one side. “My dog has more of a fashion sense than you.” 

Allen smirked, and went to flick his ear, only it put Juliette at attention, snarling at Allen, who froze. 

“Oh shit.” Gavin had his foot on her leash. He gently reached out and grabbed Allen’s wrist, putting it back down at his side. “It’s okay, pretty girl,” he murmured softly. She wiggled a little on the spot. He reached into the pocket of his coat, and passed some treats to Allen. “Bribe her.” 

“You want me to put my hand near all those teeth?” Allen looked at the treats in palm, then the dog. 

“Chicken shit.” 

Allen held out one of the pieces between his fingers before Gavin could advise putting it in his palm. He didn’t have to worry though, Juliette just licked at Allen’s fingers till she got the treat on her tongue. She stared up at Allen with adoration, licking her lips. “Did you clear this with Fowler?” 

“Figured it better to ask forgiveness than permission on that one.” 

Allen chuckled, tested his luck petting Juliette who wriggled excitedly. “Why is she here anyway?” 

“Construction by my house. I don’t think she’ll deal with the noise very well.” 

“Fowler’s not going to let this be a long term thing.” 

“I figured,” Gavin sighed. “I just haven’t come up with something better yet.” 

“Oh, Juliette is here!” Connor walked over, excited, LED spinning blue. “Hello, sweet girl.” 

Connor had quickly become a favourite of Juliette- likely because he brought Sumo, and gave her fancy dog treats every time he came over. She put her body weight into it, and pulled the leash out from under Gavin’s foot. He didn’t have time to process it before Juliette had jumped up on Connor, her front paws on his shoulders, and licking his face. The android appeared overjoyed. 

“Jesus Christ!” Hank appeared startled, then calculated. “Why the hell is your dog here, Reed?” 

“Construction,” he groaned, explaining once again. 

Hank grabbed a couple of treats out of the dish on Gavin’s desk, and whistled. Juliette turned toward the noise, eyes zeroed in on the treats, and she abandoned Connor. 

“Little traitor,” Connor hissed, bringing a surprised laugh out of Allen. 

Juliette took a liking to Hank, and kept nosing at the pocket of his jacket. “There aren’t treats in there! Sumo ate them all!” 

Juliette’s ears rotated at Sumo’s name, she let out an excited yip, and ran around Connor and Allen and back to Hank, yipping again. 

“We could keep Juliette at our house while the construction is on going,” Connor suggested. “Sumo would like the company.” 

Hank shrugged. “I guess. She’s not going to pee in the house or anything, right?” 

“No, never,” Gavin managed to say with a straight face. 

**Author's Note:**

> I'm on [Twitter](https://twitter.com/DaydreamsGolden) and as per usual, I'm hanging out over at on [ Detroit: New ERA ](https://discord.gg/GqvNzUm) Come join us! <3


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